Whereas, A.W. Walker is a courageous, dedicated, and committed unionist. She symbolizes leadership, dedication, dignity, charisma, and serenity; and

Whereas, A.W. Walker is the daughter of a former Alabama sharecropper. Her father taught her that "she did not have money or fame, but she had her name so she would have to live to the extent that the name would be noteworthy." A.W. enrolled in the public school system well after age six. Her family and a grade school teacher encouraged her to become educated and serve as an example for sons and daughters of other poor sharecroppers; and

Whereas, A.W. Walker became an avid Civil Rights and Human Rights activist. She organized the first strike for student rights on her Alabama college campus. She joined the picket line everyday for the Civil Rights Movement. A.W. was one of the many activists turned back on the Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, as well as one who marched from Selma to Montgomery; and

Whereas, A.W. Walker overcame social injustice and economic disadvantage to complete her education and demonstrate to others that with education there is opportunity. She established herself in the professional community all over the southern states and was offered a fellowship to study law; and

Whereas, A.W. Walker has been employed as a teacher in the Highland Park school district for thirty-eight years, she has been serving as President of Highland Park Local 684 for more than 15 years and has been active in the labor movement as a committee chairperson, strike captain, building representative, chief negotiator, and was at one point Vice President of AFT Michigan; and

Whereas, A.W. Walker is an honored recipient of the Living Legacy Award, commemorating her contribution to organized labor and the Sinai Hospital Guild Service With Love Certificate of Recognition. She has received public acknowledgement by national, state and local dignitaries; and

Whereas, Today, A.W. Walker is a force in labor to be reckoned with in the classroom and the community. She seeks guidance from the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson, "Each man has his own vocation. The talent is the call." NOW THEREFORE BE IT

RESOLVED: For all she has accomplished and will continue to accomplish for so many, AFT Michigan presents A.W. Walker with the 2006 Walter Bergman Human Rights Award.